Clostridium difficile is a major cause of nosocomial antibiotic-associated infectious diarrhea and pseudomembranous colitis. Detection of C. difficile by anaerobic bacterial culture and/or cytotoxicity assays has been largely replaced by rapid enzyme immunoassays (EIA). However, due to the lack of sensitivity of stool EIA, we developed a multiplex real-time PCR assay targeting the C. difficile ...

BACKGROUND Effective methods are needed to collect fecal samples from children for large-scale microbiota studies. Stool collected on fecal occult blood test (FOBT) cards that can be mailed provides an effective solution; however, the quality of sequencing resulting from this method is unknown. The aim of this study is to compare microbiota metrics of 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene sequencing fr...

AIMS To determine the concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) in stools from children. METHODS Stool samples from 14 healthy children, 32 children with inflammatory bowel disease, and 23 children with acute diarrhoea were emulsified in an equal volume of phosphate buffered saline and then centrifuged to produce a clear supernatant fluid. IL-6 and TN...

Despite the potential effectiveness of colonoscopy and fecal occult blood tests in reducing colorectal cancer mortality, more specific, noninvasive tests are desirable. In this regard, it is possible to detect specific mutations of several genes in stool samples from colorectal cancer patients. Recently, the feasibility of a multitarget assay has been explored (1,2). Because the features of the...

A large number of Primary Care consultations are for chronic abdominal pain and heavy digestion, which can be related to infection with Helicobacter pylori and/or parasites in some patients (1,2). These are given an empiric therapy and/or their stool is examined for the presence of H. pylori and its treatment when detected (3). The prevalence of these parasites varies according to the socio-dem...

Cryptosporidium , a protozoan parasite that causes watery diarrhea, is found worldwide and is common in areas with low water hygiene. In February 2014, 866 stool samples were collected from the inhabitants of 2 rural areas in White Nile State, Sudan. These stool samples were assessed by performing modified acid-fast staining, followed by examination under a light microscope. The overall positiv...